Cauchy-Aggregated Ridge Tests for High-Dimensional Factor Pricing Models

Abstract

In high-dimensional factor pricing models, the power of regularized alpha tests depends on the ridge parameter, whose optimal value varies with the unknown direction of pricing errors. We address this tuning uncertainty by combining ridge-specific p-values using the Cauchy rule. The resulting test retains the least-squares alpha estimator and residual sample covariance and accommodates more assets than observations. We establish the joint Gaussian limits of the component statistics under the null and local alternatives and derive an explicit covariance formula across ridge parameters. These results characterize the combined test's asymptotic distribution and local power and justify its tail calibration. Simulations show empirical rejection rates close to the nominal levels and power gains over the fixed-ridge benchmark, with power approaching that of signal-informed ridge benchmarks across the simulated settings.